Penn State baseball (28-19, 14-14 Big Ten) opened its final Big Ten series of the season with a comeback win over Rutgers (25-25, 12-13 Big Ten), rallying from a 4-2 deficit to win 7-5.

Ryan DeSanto didn’t have his strongest day, routinely getting in jams and being chased in the fifth after a grand slam. Penn State got timely hits all night, including the game-winning two-run single in the ninth by Jack Porter.

How It Happened

Rutgers ace Landon Mack got the start, pitching around a one-out single by Paxton Kling to get through the first. DeSanto got into a quick jam, giving up a single and double with one out, but weaseled out of it with a pair of strikeouts.

Penn State’s offense kicked off the scoring in the second. Joe and Jesse Jaconski singled to lead off the inning before Nate Voss lifted a sacrifice fly to left field to make it 1-0. DeSanto worked around another double, and his second walk in as many innings, to get the shutdown inning.

Derek Cease led off the third with a double down the right-field line before eventually scoring on a Kling sacrifice fly to make it 2-0. After encountering some early troubles and narrowly escaping, Penn State’s ace dispatched of the Scarlet Knights with relative ease over the next two innings, holding the lead at 2-0 after four.

After Mack had settled in and cooled off the Penn State offense, DeSanto got into another mess in the bottom of the fifth, loading the bases with a single and two walks. He wouldn’t be able to escape disaster a third time, as Rutgers’ Yomar Carreras blasted a 3-2 pitch over the left field wall for a back-breaking grand slam, giving them a 4-2 lead.

After plunking the next batter, DeSanto was lifted after throwing his 101st pitch. He was one pitch from five shutout innings, but instead continued his recent rut as Dimond Loosli came in and mopped up the fifth inning.

While Mack continued to dominate the Nittany Lions, Loosli had to escape more trouble in the sixth but was aided by Voss gunning down a runner trying to steal second.

In the seventh, Jesse Jaconski finally broke Mack’s streak of 12 straight outs by cracking his 11th home run of the season to lead off the inning. After a strikeout, Voss and Matt Maloney both singled, eventually executing a double steal to put the go-ahead run in scoring position. With two out, Ryan Weingartner ripped a go-ahead two-run single up the middle to give Penn State a 5-4 lead.

That lead wouldn’t last for long, as Anthony Steele came on and walked the leadoff hitter in the bottom half before a groundout, wild pitch, and game-tying RBI single evened the score at five. Two walks gave Rutgers a chance to pull ahead, but Ben DeMell was able to escape trouble without further damage.

Bryce Molinaro led off the eighth with a single and Voss doubled him to third with two out, but Maloney grounded out to end the threat. DeMell got in trouble in the eighth, but Rutgers once again stranded a pair of runners on base.

Tied entering the ninth, the Nittany Lions’ offense came through off of Quinn Berglin. A walk by Derek Cease and a single by Kling set the table for Porter, who delivered a massive two-run double for the lead. Although they stranded the bases loaded later in the inning, Penn State took a 7-5 lead, handing the ball to Chase Renner for the last three outs.

Jack Porter rips a double into the corner to bring in Cease and Kling!!!

T9 | PSU 7, RU 5#WeAre pic.twitter.com/9PozGSE2UR

— Penn State Baseball (@PennStateBASE) May 10, 2025

Renner didn’t make things easy, allowing two more baserunners, but he got his third save of the season after racking up a pair of strikeouts to end the game. DeMell picked up his fourth win, improving to 4-3.

Takeaways

• Penn State was able to get hits when they needed. Although it missed some opportunities early and late, it was able to pick up its ace and pull it out late. Rutgers, by comparison, hit a ghastly 2-for-16 with runners in scoring position.
• Paxton Kling hasn’t hit for much power as of late, but he’s back on another hot streak. His batting average is up to .344 as he continues to be one of the most complete hitters in the Big Ten.
• After dropping six straight conference games, Penn State has won two in a row to improve to 14-14 in conference play and all but secure a spot in the Big Ten Tournament. It’s moved into ninth place, and a big weekend could get it as high as seventh. 12 teams will make the tournament, with the current first team out being Michigan State, who entered play at 10-14.

What’s Next

Penn State will look to win the series at Bainton Field in Piscataway on Saturday, May 10, at 6 p.m. The game will be televised on Big Ten Plus.